


aftermath

by network



Series: by design a victor (pkmn sw/sh) [2]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Apocalypse, The darkest day, space dragons need compassion too, very minor AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-13
Updated: 2020-10-13
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:29:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26995942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/network/pseuds/network
Summary: “What… what is this place?” He hears in his head, their voice still so alien, yet somehow inexplicably human at the same time.“This is my home.” He replies, stepping forward to survey the familiar landscape of rolling patchwork hills alongside the Pokémon.“It’s beautiful.” They whisper, carefully descending until they rest on the ground. “I’ve never seen the world like this.”
Relationships: Masaru | Victor & Mugendina | Eternatus
Series: by design a victor (pkmn sw/sh) [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1970284
Comments: 1
Kudos: 17





	aftermath

Victor can’t hear much over the deafening thump of his heartbeat.

His eyes are fixed upwards on the form of the Darkest Day, or Eternatus as Rose had called it, an alien claw of blue and preternatural red, discordant in every sense of the word as it hovers above them. Distantly he can hear himself commanding Iskit, his Cinderace, but he can’t tear his eyes away from the thing in the sky. His eyes burn and strain but it’s not until the creature lets out an unearthly howl that he blinks, watching with bated breath as it stutters in the air for a moment, before it falls, landing in a messy heap just metres from where he and Hop stand.

His companions – including the two legendary wolves – sensibly back away, but the sight of Eternatus like this, wounded and exhausted and somehow humanly sad, pushes him to step forward. It- no, they – raise their head when he does so, seemingly weakened to the point of only being able to lift it an inch or so, but also unwilling to let him get any closer unwatched.

Every reasonable part of his brain tells him to back away, to not get any closer than he has to, but some strange instinct pushes him forward regardless. He has to step over the collapsed claw, then tendril after tendril of alien geometry, yet none of the limbs so much as attempt to stop him. With each movement forward Eternatus’ base form recedes further and further back into the mess of limbs surrounding them, too tired to properly defend themselves as a potential threat gets closer and closer to the core of their weakened state.

With his breath held and his heart thumping he reaches out –

And places his hand on Eternatus’ forehead.

He was expecting many potential outcomes – his hand bitten off, getting thrown aside by a giant tendril, the universe imploding – but instead they pause, just for a moment, before their entire form slackens, the tension held across their alien shape dissipating into the blue-red evening.

At that reaction he moves closer, continuing to stroke his fingers across their crown of spine as he crouches down in front of them, both of them vulnerable, dwarfed by the limp tangle of Eternatus’ apocalyptic form that surrounds them.

“You don’t have to do this.” He whispers to them, not even sure if they can understand him. “You’re not what Rose made you.”

Somehow, he can feel their eyes on him. There’s an uncomfortably long pause, before Victor can feel him eyes start to sting, then burn, as a pressure starts to building in his head, straight between his eyes, compounding and compounding into a crescendo where he screams, hand glued to Eternatus’ forehead by some invisible force.

And then ---

it’s over.

Almost as soon as it began.

He blinks, one hand coming up to rub at his eyes. Somehow the colours of the evening before him are more vibrant, the sharp edges of Eternatus’ spined head more pronounced. Blood still pumps loudly through his ears, blocking out his hearing of the corporal world around, and yet ---

“This is what I was born for.”

He hears that with perfect clarity.

With a start he realises those words were from the Pokémon before him.

“Nobody is born to be anything.” He replies, decidedly not questioning how on earth they’re conversing.

Eternatus huffs, somehow. “Are you not going to capture me? That was the intent of summoning those two, wasn’t it?”

“Yes, but…” He sits down fully now, legs crossed and facing them. “that’s because we thought you were dangerous.”

“And I am not now?”

“No. Scared, yes. Defensive and perhaps a little vengeful. But I don’t think you intended to hurt anyone.”

At that Eternatus sets their head down, too exhausted to support it on their own. Victor’s heartrate picks up again as he reaches into his bag, aware that this is an extraordinarily risky move that could possibly get him killed.

He pulls out a pokeball, and shows it to them.

“I promise I’ll release you as soon as I can.” They look up, and Vic unknowingly holds his breath as they look him in the eyes as well as they can.

“You will hold that promise?” Is all they ask him, and he nods.

“I just need to get you away from here.” He presses the button to open it, and holds it out to them.

“Trust me.”

When the ball closes, it doesn’t shake once.

\---

He fulfils his promise not much later.

_After ‘catching’ Eternatus he had stood up, pokeball in hand, as he felt himself adjust back into the world surrounding him. The evening had felt too still after the chaos of before, sky far too normal. Hop stood a ways away, watching him carefully as he blinked black spots from his vision._

_“What… what was that?” His friend asked, slowly approaching him as one would approach a wild Pokémon._

_“What was what?” He had replied, genuinely confused, feeling strangely out of it in the too-warm, too-still evening._

_“ **That**.” Hop said, clearly terrified. “You just walked straight up to that thing, then screamed, and I- I was yelling at you to get back the whole time but you never listened, never even heard, just silently sat there then held out a ball and- and caught it! And now your eyes!” His breathing was ragged, uneven and distressed, chest heaving as tears had pricked at his eyes. Victor had rushed forward, wrapping his best friend in a tight hug, where they had stayed, as Hop had cried out all his pent-up emotions. When they separated, he tried his best to explain what had happened from his perspective._

_After he’d finished, Hop had nodded, then indicated to the pokeball still clutched in his hands._

_“Sounds like you need to make good on your promise.” When Victor had opened his mouth to protest, to argue that Hop clearly needed support right now, his friend stepped back. “Seriously, go. I need to find Lee and Raihan at the hospital anyway.” The look in his eyes had made it clear that he wouldn’t take no for an answer, so he let out his Corviknight, ready to find somewhere safe, when Hop called out._

_“Take this too.”_

_The old sword was thrown into his hands, and Hop had smiled at him, holding the rusted shield himself._

_“Good luck.”_

That’s how he finds himself atop one of Postwick’s many hills, fingers hovering – trembling, even – over the release button of a nondescript pokeball.

With a shuddered breath he releases Eternatus.

It takes them a moment to realise that they’ve been released, after which they slowly unfurl, stretching out their now-regular form. When they turn to face him, they catch sight of the landscape before them instead, and they pause. There’s something significant in the way they float forwards, towards the decline of the hill, something final in the way the setting sun refracts against the sharp vertices of their armoured body.

“What… what is this place?” He hears in his head, their voice still so alien, yet somehow inexplicably human at the same time.

“This is my home.” He replies, stepping forward to survey the familiar landscape of rolling patchwork hills alongside the Pokémon.

“It’s beautiful.” They whisper, carefully descending until they rest on the ground. “I’ve never seen the world like this.”

Victor sits down by their side and quietly mulls over his next words. Eventually he decides on “What next?”

“I am not sure. Before that human forced me awake, I had been resting.”

“Well… if you could do anything, what would it be?”

“To simply exist, I suppose. Without being treated as a monster.” They both pause. “And you?”

“To beat Leon, I guess- or to at least try.” He can tell that they don’t understand, so he dives into as simple of an explanation of the League as he can give.

“So, if you defeat him, you will become this Champion?”

“Yeah, pretty much. And if lose, I’ll just go back to life I suppose.” He can’t help but laugh, just a little. “After this amazing journey I’ve been on, it’ll be strange to go back to video games and books and school.”

There’s a pause between them.

“You speak as if you have already lost.” They comment, and he sighs.

“I pretty much already have. He’s the Unbeatable Champion for a reason. I’m lucky to have gotten this far already.” He realises that he’s rambling at this point, but he continues anyway. “And believe me, I have plenty of faith in my team. In myself too, I guess. But for anyone to beat Leon, let alone just some kid – it’s borderline impossible.”

“You are not just some child though, are you?” Victor’s confusion must be evident on his face, as they explain. “Would any child be sat here, conversating casually with the creature that almost destroyed their world? Would any child have the courage to face the apocalypse with some rusted metal and far too much compassion as their only weapons? If you are just a child, then I am just a Pokémon.”

Tears well up in his eyes and he does his best to blink them down.

“Thank you, seriously. It’s not exactly easy to have lots of faith in myself, considering I just seem to fall into every victory.”

“Take me with you.” Eternatus suddenly blurts out. “To that battle, I mean… You get a powerful team member, and I – well, I do not really have anywhere else to go.”

“Are you sure? I thought the last thing you would want is to be imprisoned again.” Not that he’d consider his team ‘imprisoned’, but it could be seen that way.

“It is different like this.” They explain. “We undeniably share a connection, your eyes and our ability to converse are proof enough of this.”

His eyes? That makes him pause, remembering that Hop had mentioned them too. Discreetly pulling out his phone he’s both shocked and unsurprised to see that the eyes staring back at him are a sunset’s blend of reds and pinks and oranges, matching the otherworldly glow emitted from between Eternatus’ plates.

“Are you sure?” He asks again as he puts his phone away, needing the confirmation but terrified of a negative reply. They’re right, the two of them have bonded somehow in the hour of which they’ve known each other – and Vic doesn’t want to let that go.

“I have never been surer of anything.” Is the reply, and when he sets his hand on Eternatus’ head it feels decisive in a way he doesn’t understand –

\- until a week later –

\- when Leon takes his hand, and announces him to Galar as their new Champion.


End file.
